Ramūnas Šiškauskas

Infobox Euroleague Player


nickname = Šiška, Mažas, Baltic Pippen
caption =
position = Shooting Guard
Small Forward
height_ft = 6
height_in = 6
weight_lb = 210
league = Russian League
Euroleague
team = CSKA Moscow
jersey =| number = 9
nationality = Lithuanian
birth_date = birth date and age|1978|9|10
birth_place = Kaišiadorys, Lithuania
draft =
draft_year =
draft_team =
career_start = 1996
former_teams = Sakalai (1996-1998)
Lietuvos Rytas (1998-2004)
Benetton Treviso (2004-2006)
Panathinaikos (2006-2007)
CSKA (2007-2008)
awards = Lithuanian League MVP 2001
Italian League Finals MVP 2006
Lithuanian Sportsman of the Year 2007
Euroleague 2007-08 MVP
Russian League Player of the Year 2008

Ramūnas Šiškauskas (pronunciation|Ramunas Siskauskas.ogg, born September 10th, 1978, in Kaišiadorys, Lithuanian SSR, USSR) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for the Lithuanian National Team and for CSKA Moscow. He can play both the shooting guard and small forward positions. He is 6'6" (1.98 m) in height and he weighs 210 lbs. (95 kg).

Pro career

Unlike most other Lithuanian players, he did not attend basketball school, and was spotted playing in Kaišiadorių Baltija in the Lithuanian B league, and he then advanced to the top Lithuanian basketball league the LKL with the BC Sakalai team. After a successful LKL debut, he joined Lithuanian basketball giant BC Lietuvos Rytas and became the leader. Šiškauskas has led the team to LKL titles in 2000 and 2002.

In 2004, Šiškauskas joined Benetton Treviso and while playing there for two seasons, he received a great deal of attention from some of the top European clubs. In the 2006 off season, he signed a two-year deal with Panathinaikos BC, and helped them win the Euroleague 2006-07 championship, the Greek Cup championship, and the Greek League championship all in the same season, completing the coveted the Basketball Triple Crown championship for the year.

In the 2007 off season, Šiškauskas was transferred to CSKA Moscow. With CSKA he won the Euroleague 2007-08 championship, making back-to-back Euroleague championship wins for him, one each with two different clubs. While with CSKA Moscow, he also won the Russian League championship that same season as well.

Player profile

Šiškauskas is a physical forward (198 cm or 6'6" tall) who can easily play, both on offense and defense, at the guard positions, on the wing, and also in the paint. His excellent leaping ability and his quickness make him a surprising shot blocker and one of the best one-on-one players in Europe. The best defensive player of the Lithuania national basketball team; he led the 2003-04 Lithuanian League in free throws percentage (90.6%).

Lithuanian national team

Šiškauskas was a member of the Lithuanian national basketball teams that won the bronze medal at the 2000 Olympic Basketball Tournament and the bronze medal at the 2007 European Championship. He was also a member of the Lithuanian team that won the gold medal at the 2003 European Championship.

Awards and achievements

Lithuanian national team

*Olympic bronze medalist - 2000 Olympic Basketball Tournament
*Eurobasket 2003 Gold Medal
*Eurobasket 2007 bronze medalist
*Member of Eurobasket 2007 All-Tournament Team

Pro career

*Lithuanian League regular season MVP - 2001
*2-time Lithuanian League Champion - 2000, 2002
*Italian League Champion - 2006
*Italian League - Finals MVP - 2006
*Italian National Cup winner - 2005
*All-Euroleague Second Team - Euroleague 2006-07
*All-Euroleague First team - Euroleague 2007-08
*2-time Euroleague Champion Euroleague 2006-07, Euroleague 2007-08
*Euroleague 2007-08 MVP
*Greek League Champion - Greek League 2006-07
*Greek Cup Champion - 2007
*Basketball Triple Crown Champion - 2007
*Lithuanian Sportsman of the Year - 2007
*Russian League Champion - 2008
*Russian League Player of the Year - 2008

External links

* [http://www.euroleague.net/competition/players/showplayer?gamecode=216&pcode=JMM Euroleague.net Profile]
* [http://www.eurobasket2007.org/en/cid_BqypGFJPHy-Nw4lwIAq,v3.teamID_2135.compID_qMRZdYCZI6EoANOrUf9le2.season_2007.roundID_5169.playerID_28243.html 2007 Eurobasket Player Profile]